natural’s voxbox 2012 #influenster #voxbox #naturalsvoxbox

A week or so ago I received my second VoxBox from Influenster. This one has a “natural” theme and was more more useful for me than the first which had a “love” theme and included chocolates, fake nail color things, and other crazy stuff.

I was immediately excited to use The Original Dish Drying Mat. It’s a layer of foam surrounded by microfiber and is mean to soak up all of the water that drips off of your dishes. Think big dishes washing loads and laying all of the dishes out on towels. For some reason kitchen towels are never overly absorbent so that is usually not very useful. I started using the mat right away and while I do like it I am happy that I didn’t actually purchase it.

We have little counter space in our kitchen so I’ve been setting the dish strainer on top of the left basin of our sink. Not ideal but it works. With the The Original Dish Drying Mat I thought I could go back to putting the dishes on the counter and simply put the mat away when finished – its way easier to put away than I an entire dish rack thing.

We don’t have a dishwasher so I’m constantly hand washing dishes. This has caused the The Original Dish Drying Mat to constantly be wet. I try to let it hang up to air dry overnight but sometimes its still wet in the morning. I’m concerned about mildew but so far it’s been fine. It is machine washable but I don’t want to have to regularly wash it.. that probably makes it more inconvenient than convenient.

So… I like the product but don’t run out to get one unless you really see how it will fit into your routine.

LypSyl Intense Protection LypMoisturizer

The tube is a little bulky but overall I really like this product. It’s made of pure beeswax, organic shea butter, and vitamins A and E. Instead of rotating the bottom to move the stick upward it has a little bee on the side that you push up. Cute, no?! I was concerned the bee would get pushed up in my pocket but so far this hasn’t happened, thankfully.

EBOOST

EBOOST is a powder (or shot) that is supposed to “boost” your mood, focus, and immunity. It claims to be “all natural” and comes in different flavors. I’m not really into things like this. I’ll drink water. And eat a banana. And I only got one so it’s hard to try it and actually gauge if it made you feel any different.

CleanWell Individual Hand Sanitizer Wipes

I’m sort of against hand sanitizer unless it’s a dire situation. I saw a funny thing the other day: “The first ingredient in hand sanitizer is paranoia.” HA. I’m sure you’ve heard… we over sanitize. For the most part bacteria is good. The world is filled with it. We NEED it. So I don’t want to kill it all. When in doubt… wash your hands. It should absolutely be the priority over hand sanitizing.

Only one little wipe was included in the box so it’s kind of hard to accurately tell you what I think, especially since I don’t even really want to use it in the first place. But if you need hand sanitizer this stuff is pretty mild and the ingredients are “all natural”.

GEODEO

I was really excited to find deodorante in the VoxBox. I use a natural deodorant that I like, has a subtle smell, and works well for me. Though I can go easily without deodorant so I’m not the best judge. I was excited because I’ve been making deodorante for Tyler but I guess he isn’t really enjoying it as much as I would have hoped. So when I saw the GEODO Natural Deodorant Plus Detox Complex in the box I thought it’d be great for him to try! But it’s super feminine smelling. We don’t use many fragranced things so I was pretty turned off by the smell – it isn’t terrible it’s just sort of strong. Though it’s worked great for me thus far.. so if you’re used to smells I’d say give it a try. It claims to be naturally-derived and specially formulated to be safe for your body and the world.

NECTRESSE

Eww. I’ll start by saying that I don’t like stevia and I don’t like Truvia. I wasn’t at all expecting to like NECTRESSE. I was only given two small packets in the box, which was disappointing. I don’t sweeten my coffee anymore and I am only likely to use sweetener while baking but two packets is not enough for that. So I put some in my coffee this morning and… I couldn’t finish my coffee. I just don’t like the taste.

But if you like stevia and Truvia it’s worth a try. NECTRESSE has no calories per tiny serving and is 100% natural – it is made from monk fruit and is also combined with other natural sweeteners. I wish I had more information about exactly how is was made and where monk fruit comes from. I could look that up.. but I don’t really want to. The first ingredient is Erythritol, the second is sugar, and the fourth is molasses. So… you decide. Just a friendly reminder to look at labels and use your brain. The cute little packet says “MADE FROM MONK FRUIT” all big and nice… but it seems more like a conglomerate of sweeteners made WITH some monk fruit all in the name of Splenda jumping on the natural sweeteners bandwagon.

Personally, I prefer maple syrup and honey. They’re pretty simple.

SheaMoisture Raw Shea, Chamomile & Argan Baby Bar Soap

So… seeing as how I don’t really use soap… I don’t have much to say about this. Tyler switched it out with our natural aloe bar though, so I think he likes it. It says “baby” but it isn’t just for babies… like most “baby” products. The soap contains sea butter, argan oil, chamomile extract, frankincense, and myrrh. It is sulfate free and super safe. It claims to sooth inflammation, irritation, and itching associated with eczema. I’m all about finding something somewhat natural to combat those things, or anything really. So if you need to clean your face or you are bothered by any of those things I just mentioned, it probably wouldn’t hurt to try.